Carcass characteristics and economic viability of the use of ractopamine for finishing swine with ad libitum or restricted feeding/Caracteristicas da carcaca e viabilidade economica do uso de cloridrato de ractopamina para suinos em terminacao com alimentacao a vontade ou restrita

• Published in: Ciência rural 2009-05, Vol.39 (3), p.844
• Main Authors: Cantarelli, Vinicius de Souza, Fialho, Elias Tadeu, de Almeida, Erin Caperuto, Zangeronimo, Marcio Gilberto, Amaral, Nikolas de Oliveira, Lima, Jose Augusto de Freitas
• Format: Article
• Language: Portuguese
• ISSN: 0103-8478

The objective of this research was to evaluate the supplementation of 5ppm of ractopamine (RAC), associated or not with feed restriction, on carcass characteristics on finishing pigs and the economic viability of its use. Thirty hybrid barrows (life weight of 107.2 ± 6.2kg), receiving the experimental diets during 28 days before the slaughter. A randomized blocks design in factorial scheme 2 x 2 + 1 (with or without RAC in diets with 1.04% of total lysine; ad libitum or feed restriction of 15% and an additional treatment--control--ad libitum, without RAC containing 0.8% of lysine--standard diet), totalizing five treatments and six replicates. The addiction of RAC per se increased the loin eye area, the meat percentage, the carcass meat:fat ratio, the allowance index, the gross earnings and the production net earnings and decreased the animals back-fat thickness. When associated with feed restriction, the RAC decreased the carcass fat percentage. Compared to standard diet, the RAC increased the carcass yield, the carcass meat percentage and the allowance index paid to the producer and decreased the backfat thickness. The RAC associated at the feed restriction decreased the fat carcass percentage and increased the carcass meat:fat ratio and the gross earnings. Thus, the supplementation with 5ppm of RAC, associated or no at the feed restriction, improves the carcass characteristics and the economic viability of production.